Animated GIFs: The Birth of a Medium

GIFs are one of the oldest image formats used on the web. Throughout their history, they have served a huge variety of purposes, from functional to entertainment. Now, 25 years after the first GIF was created, they are experiencing an explosion of interest and innovation that is pushing them into the terrain of art. The video from Off Book charts their history, explores the hotbed of GIF creativity on Tumblr, and features two teams of GIF artists who are evolving the form into powerful new visual experiences.